


Vows

by Badi_otaku



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Arranged Marriage, Cousins, F/M, Unbreakable Vow (Harry Potter)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-09-29
Updated: 2019-09-29
Packaged: 2020-11-07 15:16:19
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 991
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20819444
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Badi_otaku/pseuds/Badi_otaku
Summary: Marriage in pure-blood families is on a whole other level.





	Vows

**Author's Note:**

> Here’s a little something I just thought about in between classes at school (don’t ask why), I quickly wrote it down and decided to post it because why not…

Marriage in most wizard families was a casual business. Some organized receptions on their wedding day, some ceremonies were grand, and some were more intimate, a few people, mostly family, a few formalities at the ministry of magic, some faithful and love-driven vows exchanged before witnesses and it was done.

Marriage in pure-blood families was something else, as you had discovered for yourself just a few minutes ago. And as far as you could tell, the man in front of you hadn’t suspected it until now either. He looked dumbfounded, as if he’d just found out he was going to marry today. Although, when you thought about it, that actually might have been the case…

You looked down at where his hand joined yours, your heartbeat quickening more and more as realization hit you. You were going to be married to Sirius Black. Your breath caught in your throat as a thread of light escaped your father’s wand and started winding around your and Sirius’s hand. Your fingers twitched slightly in fear and your eyes shot up to look at the silvery ones in front of you.

You remembered the many conversations you two had, those being more and more frequent as you approached an older age. The conversations about a possible marriage between the two of you. Of course, you had expected it early on, ever since you realized you were one of the only few remaining valid suitors for such a union.

He kept repeating that sentence, whenever you where left alone in the same room. “My parents are gonna try and marry us, you know?” You knew, but you never thought it would happen one day. You never thought Sirius would accept to marry one day. You never thought your own father would accept to marry you to your own cousin one day. But you were so wrong.

Sirius stared at you, although he seemed to stare into space, his hand loosening its grip slightly around your wrist, as if he considered backing up, stopping the process altogether. But you knew it was unstoppable, or at least you didn’t dare to think of the consequences, and neither did he.

He was nearly disowned when he tried to run away a few years ago. For some reason, unknown to you at the time, he decided to stay. He told you later that it was for you he stayed. Because if he were to leave, the next best suitor for you would be Regulus, favourite child, Death Eater in the making Regulus Black, and Sirius would rather give up on his freedom than leaving you alone in the hands of his hatred-filled, twisted, sad excuse of a family.

You rarely saw him after that. But it didn’t prevent your parents from plotting behind your back. Every time you saw each other, you felt it getting closer and closer, and yet you never expected it to happen. Your mind played tricks on you sometimes, going back to better times, when you were both smaller and happier, when you used to play house, and pretend that you were married. Things became awkward when you grew up and you realized you had somewhat of a crush on him, your own cousin. You quickly pushed it back, though, but it never really went away, did it?

But now it all felt so real, it _was_ all so real. You weren’t ready, and he wasn’t either. He wasn’t ready to swear an oath to you, let alone _that_ sort of oath. This was how it went down in pure-blood families, especially for unwanted unions. They had found a way to keep couples together, you thought, a way they were sure would work.

Your knees hurt from resting against the hard-wooden floor for too long and you somehow found yourself wishing it would be over. But thinking about it sent a shiver of dread running down your spine, a sliver of bitterness traveling with it as you thought about your father, who betrayed your trust by accepting to sacrifice so much energy to build this twisted bound, as it was law amongst pure-blood families, the husband to be made the vow, the father of the bride to be made the bound.

You gaze fell onto your hand again and a second strand of light winded around it as you only now took notice of Sirius’ voice. “I will,” he said, his voice clearly lacking determination and it pained you somehow, you didn’t know what he promised but you suddenly doubted the power of the so-called unbreakable vow. How could its magic persist, when the will of the maker was so weak?

Oh, but it _was_ powerful, you realized as you felt the last thread weaving around your hand, a burning sensation radiating in the inside of your wrist. You saw Sirius’ face flinch slightly as it became more and more intense.

“And do you promise to cherish and protect her, until death do you part?” You heard your father’s voice resonate from your right-hand side and tears pooled in your eyes as you felt the end inch closer and closer, as if an invisible prison was built around you in an instant.

Hopeful, you looked into Sirius’s eyes, maybe it was still time to turn back. Maybe you could forget everything and go back to being the innocent and clueless kids you used to be. Playing in the yard, climbing the highest trees, running around free, not caring if your clothes and shoes got dirty in the process.

“I do.” It reached your ears like a death sentence and you took no oxygen in the next breath you drew. For a moment you thought your heart stopped beating until the heat in your wrist rushed to the very core of your body, striking your chest like a lightning, giving you life again as a single tear ran down your cheek.

You were married to Sirius Black.


End file.
